131–140 of 170 posts
I am a total whore for historical fiction: 'Shogun' by James Clavell was the first book I read that had me glued to it for hours and hours at a time. Tai Pan is also a classic. I also found the original three Courtney books by Wilbur Smith (starting with 'The Sound of Thunder') were a guilty pleasure. They are pure trash, with thin characters and a predictable plot but epic adventure nonetheless. More recently I've t…
Has no one recommended Musashi? Really? Here's a writeup I did in another comment - -- If you're talented and get frustrated with stupid people, you have to read "Musashi" by Eiji Yoshikawa. I mean, you have to. Musashi was one of the greatest (maybe the greatest) swordsman of all time. He invented a Japanese longblade/shortblade mixed style of swordsmanship, at one point fighting himself out of an ambush when he was…
Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl Amazing book on the meaning of life from the founder of logotherapy (therapy based on helping clients to find meaning in their life) who is also a holocaust survivor. The first 2/3 of the book is an autobiography about his experiences in the concentration camps and the psychological mindset of the prisoners. The last 1/3 takes his experiences and outlines the basis for which…
If you liked "Atlas Shrugged", you will love "East of Eden" by George Steinbeck. It has some passages on self-determination that puts anything found in Rand to shame. It's a tome, and it starts slow - do yourself a favor and make it through the introduction of one of the villains, Kathy (chapter 8 or so). It doesn't slow down after that. "The Watchmen" by Alan Moore. It may be a graphic novel, but the issues it raise…
Surely You're Joking is amazing. It's one of those books I can't get enough of, and I reread it several times. I wish I had such an interesting life.
If you liked "Atlas Shrugged", you will love "East of Eden" by George Steinbeck. It has some passages on self-determination that puts anything found in Rand to shame. It's a tome, and it starts slow - do yourself a favor and make it through the introduction of one of the villains, Kathy (chapter 8 or so). It doesn't slow down after that. "The Watchmen" by Alan Moore. It may be a graphic novel, but the issues it raise…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I gave up on System of the World after it turned out not to be a trilogy after all. Anything else by Stephenson I obsess over, though. Anathem was basically a religious experience for me and I read it straight through twice - something I only do about once a decade. I might be ready for a fourth reading now.
Anathem was absolutely fantastic. It's the only book I have re-read in the past 15 years.
Especially since the bherms mentioned Atlas Shrugged, I think BK would be a great book to explore humanity illuminated in a much different way.
If you resonate at all with Vonnegut's humor and pathos, then please oh please grab a copy of Sirens. I'm tired of being the only one at the dinner table who's read it!
If I were to name one, it would be "The Black Swan", by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. You hear all the time about how unlikely it is for someone to succeed as a startup. Or how the Democrats have a 65% chance of winning. Or even how statistically speaking, it's safer to fly than to drive. After going through that book, my perception on randomness was changed forever.
Have you read the Taleb's previous book, "Fooled by Randomness"? I was completely blown away by it. I didn't find "Black Swan" to be anywhere near as interesting, but that could just be because I read it second.
The Black Swan is longer, and has a bit more technical coverage. I liked that, but I've heard from others that it gets in the way of the main point about how to deal with randomness.
Regardless, both books are insanely good. Worth the time and money for sure.